Top Lands Official under Fire over Auction of Raphael Tuju’s Dari Business Park
- Busia senator Okiya Omtatah made a request to the court seeking to introduce new evidence against a senior lands official
- In the application seen by TUKO.co.ke Omtatah accused the land's official of allegedly allowing the transfer of Raphael Tuju’s property despite an existing court order
- Tuju’s Dari Business Park was auctioned for over KSh 450 million despite the court halting its sale or transfer
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Nairobi: A senior lands official faces fresh scrutiny over the alleged illegal transfer of a prime land owned by former Cabinet Secretary Raphael Tuju.
Source: UGC
The transfer is alleged to have been made despite an active court order barring the same.
Why top lands official is in trouble
Busia Senator Okiya Omtatah has accused the officer of impropriety and defying court orders regarding the transfer of the land.
Omtatah, who is a respondent in an ongoing appeal, has sought the court's permission to introduce fresh evidence implicating the officer in the alleged unlawful transfer of Dari Business Park in Nairobi’s Karen area.
"This Honourable Court do grant leave to the 2nd Applicant to adduce additional evidence in terms of the further affidavit of Okiya Omtatah Okoiti annexed to this application. The said affidavit be admitted to the record and be deemed to have been filed and served,” read part of the application seen by TUKO.co.ke.
The senator argues that the new evidence touches on dereliction of statutory duty and blatant disobedience of court orders and bears upon the integrity, legality and propriety of the official's conduct as acting chief land registrar and his fitness for office.
In the application, the legislator said that at the time of filing the appeal, he had not obtained the new evidence he wanted to introduce.
“That unless the court grants the orders sought, there exists a real and imminent risk that the appeal will be determined without the benefit of crucial information touching on public interest, statutory compliance and the integrity of the holder of a key office in land administration,” Omtatah said.
The court had, in April 2024, issued an order barring any sale or transfer of Tuju’s property as part of an ongoing legal battle with East African Development Bank and Garam Investments Auctioneers over a disputed loan.
Source: Original
The order was extended on November 20, 2024, and on February 6, 2025, for a third time.
According to the senator, the order was duly served to the Ministry of Lands, but legal representatives were allegedly informed at Ardhi House that the directive was not “registrable,” lacking explicit instruction to the Chief Land Registrar.
"The Chief Land Registrar has a statutory obligation to register and enforce valid court orders,” Omtatah states in his court papers.
“...actions—or inaction—raise serious concerns about his integrity, his fitness to hold public office, and adherence to the rule of law,” he added.
Tuju moved to court to stop the auction of his Karen properties by the bank and auctioneers seeking to recover a loan, a matter still under judicial consideration.
Tuju questions Supreme Court judges' integrity
Previously, TUKO.co.ke reported that the former Cabinet minister had protested over the alleged conduct of some of the apex court judges.
Tuju accused the judges of discussing an active court case in relation to his legal battle with the East African Development Bank.
The protest was contained in his hard-hitting letter to Chief Justice Martha Koome.
Source: TUKO.co.ke
Zipporah Weru (Freelance editor) Zipporah Weru is a professional journalist with a bias towards human interest, human rights, crimes and court reporting with over 14 years’ experience in journalism. She is currently covering civil, criminal and constitutional cases across Nairobi courts. She holds a Diploma in Journalism and Public Relations from the Technical University of Kenya. You can reach her at zweru34@gmail.com.
Joshua Cheloti (Editorial assistant) Joshua Cheloti is a multi-skilled journalist with over 5 years of experience in the media industry. He holds a Diploma in Journalism and Mass Communication and is pursuing a Bachelor of Arts in Mass Media and Communication at Mount Kenya University. At TUKO, he's an editorial assistant. Before TUKO, he worked at Nairobi Review as an editorial writer, at Hope Media (Hope TV and Hope FM) as a correspondent in Eldoret, Hivisasa.com digital content editor and online writer, at Biblia Husema Broadcasting (BHB), Eldoret as Radio Presenter. Email: Joshua.cheloti@tuko.co.ke
